Turkish Defense Minister, Mr. Yasar Guler met and held a high-level discussion with Somalia’s Army Chief, General Ibrahim Mohamed Mohamud while Turkish Army Chief, General Selcuk Bayraktaroglu was in attendance at the meeting.
The meeting took place on Monday and is part of the high-level engagement between the defense agencies in Somalia and Turkey, an official statement from the Turkish Defense Ministry said. Somalia’s Army Chief travelled to Ankara after he received an official invitation from his Turkish counterpart.
The visit coincides at a time when the two countries are closely cooperating in the areas of security, rebuilding security agencies, and Somali security forces. Somalia and Turkey established cooperation in the fields of security and defense while Ankara is assisting the Somali Army by providing training, and enhancing the quality and the capabilities of the security agencies.
Turkish Defense Ministry did not offer further details regarding issues that were high in the agenda of the talks. The visit of the Somali Army Chief to Ankara comes at a time when Somalia is facing complex security situation and efforts are underway to strengthen the capabilities of government forces, with military cooperation between Somalia and Turkey serving as a key pillar of external support for the Somali Military.
